1914
April - ophobia I wandered lonely as a cloud, That floats on high above the wold; For Jennie couldn't kiss me now, Because I've got a blasted cold! Oh, April's woods are greening, sure, And spring's new growth supplants the old; But now my language ain't so pure; I've got a - - April cold!
Theophilus Wordsworth Thaw East Pitchfork, N. H.
Well, whatever you think of April and there are many divergent opinions of it - these fellows like it because it's the month in which they will get many greetings and congratulations on their birthdays. We all join in felicitations to: Dearing, Emerson, Fordham, Grant, Gregg, Higgins, Holway, Richardson, Richmond, Stratton, Vorhees, White. Many happy returns!
There are a few men in every class who seem to be the answer to the class secretary's prayer - and our assiduous PenAborn is certainly one of them. He communicates and regularly. He reports that four stalwarts of the class of 1914 attended the Alumni Dinner in Boston on February 2 - Austin, Gregg, Saltmarsh and, of course, our redoubtable Aborn. Pen says he was very pleasantly surprised, not only because of the unexpected company, but because those who planned the affair seemed to realize that the best speeches are the shortest ones - and that good music is always a pleasant concomitant.
It also developed at this dinner that all is not lost in Wellesley because Herb Austin —contrary to our original statement —is taking off in May for a trip to Ireland, Scotland, and Scandinavia. We thought there was something wrong because Herb stated that he wasn't taking any trips in the near future, but now, of course, life for our Wellesley editor is back on the track.
I wonder if you remember the very at- tractive young woman who was holding my hand at our 50th Reunion banquet - Jessie Claeys Beck? Jessie reports, with considerable good humor, that a newspaper report credits her with having eight husbands and assures us that this - like the rumor of Mark Twain's death — is more than a little exaggerated. Jessie lives in one of the most favored climates and cities in the U.S. - Santa Barbara, Calif.
Doc Cook is one of the joys of the classsecretary! He writes, and tells us something! Here's what Doc lias to say - "I wish I were more traveled to tell about, but my routine is uneventful. I am tutoring quite a bit of mathematics to students of nearby schools and colleges. One tells another and before I know it I have said, 'Yes, come on over.' I find now with the new math that to find the price of one pencil when you know the price of two, it is necessary to mention the multiplicative inverse. (A student with braces cannot say it.) I am going again to Camel Back near Scottsdale, Ariz., the latter part of February. The porter, when taking my golf clubs last trip out said, 'Do you have just this suit case and the shot gun?' I carry six clubs." My neighbor, Bill Emery, says, "A man's health can be judged by what he takes two at a time • pills or stairs."
At long last a welcome letter from DwightWarner shunted to us by the assiduous RufeSisson. "Anent Charlie's 'My Get Up and Go Has Got Up and Went' I agree with every part except the very last when it stated that he ate a good breakfast and then went back to bed. This brought us to discussing the various people that we had known throughout the years. We try to forget the past and live in the present, but on the sidelines."
Sig Larmon - another of our good correspondents - took a look at the 1912 catalog and sent us a few heartbreaking items. For instance; college expenses for the year varied from $322 to $566 when we were young and gay. Tuition was $125 and board and room about $176 a year. This brought to mind a brief conversation I once had with Jim Haggerty, whom you remem- ber as the majordomo of the grill in the basement of College Hall. I complimented Jim on the uniformly high quality of the butter. "Well, it ought to be good," said Jim, "we pay 18c a pound for it."
It is interesting indeed to note that Jean Poindexter Colby has just published another book which was celebrated by the publishers, Hastings House, in her lovely Victorian house on Chestnut Street in Brookline. Jean's husband was our beloved classmate, Dr. Fletcher Colby. This newest book is one of a series which has been very successful, indeed.
The Stanley Works very evidently likes Pritchards, for we have just learned that the new treasurer of the far-flung Stanley Works is John Pritchard '43, the son of our classmate, Dick, who was chairman of the board of Stanley Works until his death. John writes that his mother has continued to enjoy good health, does quite a bit of travelling, and is spending a couple of months in Florida.
I suppose the rarest pleasures are often the most enjoyable and that is why a brief note from Fran Pooler in Weston, Mass., was particularly gratifying. Fran writes that he has eleven grandchildren with four of them in college. He also says, "I'm not very good at doing nothing, so I try to do something, and I'm not very good at that either." Somehow or other we are not so sorry for Fran.
Hod Potter writes from Augusta, Me., that he still continues pretty well, but that recently his wife has had to undergo surgery and is only slowly recovering. He reports that the day after Thanksgiving was a very happy one for the Potters because Doc andFern Kingsford drove up for a visit and all four had a good time talking and settling the affairs of the world. This is a privilege reserved for the young in heart.
Phil Smith in West Hartford sends a reminiscence that I wish I could print, because I've been chuckling at it ever since Phil very kindly sent it to me in perfect response to my request for anecdotes of our undergraduate years. But - well, it would be worth a trip to West Hartford just to hear Phil tell it. Of course, you may remember a very lively class meeting during freshman year - a spirited debate - and then a wellbeloved T4er rising excitedly and uttering what is certainly "the blooper of the decade"! If you're near Hartford, stop in and get it from Phil —or come in here - and you'll be laughing for a long time. How about your "remembrance of things past"? Any good ones?
We have learned, just as we had submitted our class notes, of the death of Jack Bellinger in Tyler, Texas. Jack was one of the most prominent and popular members of our class and his qualities of leadership demonstrated on the campus gave ample promise of the solid success that came to him in later years.
To Jack's wife Grace, son John '46, daughter, and the family we unite in expressing our sympathy.
Secretary, Farwell Lane, New London, N. H. 03257
Class Agent,9 Keogh Lane, New Rochelle, N. Y. 10805
